Expert: Quintero insane at time of officer's slaying

Expert: Quintero insane at time of HPD officer's slayingJury is told that the man's mental state was to blame for the death of Rodney Johnson

Published 5:30 am, Tuesday, May 6, 2008

Juan Leonardo Quintero was insane during the few minutes he shot a Houston police officer, a psychologist told jurors Monday as Quintero's defense team laid the groundwork to show that he is not guilty of capital murder by reason of insanity.

"This individual, at the time of the incident, was obviously insane," said Antonio Puente, a psychology expert who said he believes the 34-year-old defendant was unable to determine right from wrong because of a mental disorder or defect.

Puente said an "animal-like syndrome" at the time of the shooting rendered Quintero unable to think or even process thought.

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The psychologist said Quintero's mental state — caused by "a perfect storm" of brain damage, anxiety and lack of self-medication — led the landscaper to kill officer Rodney Johnson during a traffic stop on Sept. 21, 2006.

He said Quintero woke up with a sense of foreboding and was alarmed when he was arrested. He also said Quintero suffered from depression because of his work situation as a laborer, rather than a foreman.

Puente also emphasized that Quintero generally drank about 24 beers a day, but had only had three at the time of the shooting.

Prosecutor Lyn McClellan's cross-examination of the psychologist brought bursts of laughter from the gallery as he used hyperbole in an attempt to discredit the theory.

"Are you saying that if Mr. Quintero had been drunk that day we would not be here today?" McClellan asked.

The psychologist said it was possible.

McClellan noted that temporary insanity is not a defense to capital murder. Temporary insanity, rather than insanity, is an issue for the jury to consider if Quintero is convicted, he said.

Prosecutors, who plan to seek a death sentence if Quintero is convicted, rested their case Thursday.

Other experts the defense is likely to call include a neuropsychologist who is expected to testify about MRI scans of Quintero's brain.

Quintero's attorneys have said he suffered brain damage in a childhood fall and that he shot Johnson because he perceived that the officer was a threat.

Johnson was shot seven times as he filled out paperwork in the front seat of his patrol car. Quintero was handcuffed and locked in the back seat.

Investigators have said Johnson searched Quintero but overlooked the gun he had tucked in his waistband after arresting him for not having a driver's license.